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The Emerging Technology of Digital Photography

  Future Developments

The current offering of cameras are well suited to photojournalism, studio and point-and-shoot applications. In most cases, the technology, quality and costs have not made digital photography appropriate for applications such as high-end fashion, portrait/wedding, etc. Digital cameras complement the digital environment from design through print. Dynamic change slowly evolves; digital photography will continue to be adopted in all imaging workflows as performance improves, prices fall and customers are educated.

  History

Digital photography generally refers to the capture of still images in digital format using a digital camera. The phrase is also often used by some as a description for the conversion of any traditional photographic image into a digital format through the use of devices such as scanners or Photo CD.

Although used in some highly specialized applications years earlier, digital photography first gained acceptance as a practical, professional application in the early 1990's. Since that time, the numbers and types of digital cameras and applications has grown exponentially.

  Technology

There are two basic types of charge-coupled devices (CCD) that are used in digital cameras; the area array and linear array.

 Digital cameras employ area array chips, which are a rectangular array of pixels. The filtered area arrays function like a frame of film, allowing you to photograph moving objects in one exposure at any shutter speed (single-shot exposures). Area array cameras also have the option to use a color filter wheel (three exposures R, G, B) for increased color fidelity.

Linear arrays use a single row of pixels that scan across the image. Linear arrays are designed mainly for flatbed and film scanners. They make three separate exposures - one for each of the red, green and blue filters. Linear arrays can deliver high-resolution images, but are limited to motionless objects. They also typically require long exposures and continuous illuminations light sources. Some devices employ a tri-linear array; capturing three colors in a single pass. They also require still objects and continuously lighting.

The technological advances will continue to happen with imaging sensor science. Hardware and software interfaces will also improve. Smaller, faster, and easier to use will be the name of the game. Computer technology continues to improve every day. Microprocessors are beginning to achieve what was considered impossible just a short while ago. Digital photography will continue to gain acceptance in consonance with the computer revolution.

  Applications

The early adopter of digital photography in a professional imaging application was the photojournalism market. This was driven by a number of factors:

1. their need to capture late breaking events and meet production deadlines
2. lower image quality requirements in reproduction than some other professional applications
3. familiarity with electronic imagery (wirephotos, Picture Desk)

 As camera and sensor technology - along with computer capability and storage options - continue to improve, digital photography has become a practical business solution in other market segments including:

1. Catalog/Retail - these segments have adopted digital photography for production efficiency, cost reduction on traditional film products, competitive pressures, etc. In particular, catalog/retail operations that are vertically integrated (control photography/pre-press) have benefited from digital workflows.
2. "Images for Information" - generally non-professional users of images, such as real estate and insurance companies, who have adopted digital photography as an efficient, cost effective replacement for instant and/or traditional photography.
3. Advanced amateur/hobbyist - using digital images on internet web sites, e-mail, etc.
4. Consumer photos- As the price point of some cameras are now below $500 and home color continuous tone printers that use high grade photographic quality paper have recently been introduced to the marketplace, the prospect of a home based desktop darkroom is now a reality for early adapters.

  Worflow Implications

Digital photography will help redefine production and workflow scenarios for both professionals and consumers. In particular, print professionals and their supplier network will be affected by these dynamic changes. The elimination of film, film processing & scanning will contribute to cost savings. Investments in computers, peripheral devices and storage media will offset some of the savings. Photographers will begin to learn color separation & computer skills; color separators and color labs will begin to offer digital photography services to their clients.

  Limitations

When discussing limitations of digital photography, references are often made to pixels and resolution. Pixel is short for picture element and is the smallest discrete unit of data in an image. Pixels create a picture display by acting somewhat like a "mosaic" of tiny tiles. The color and brightness values of adjacent pixels create the illusion of tone and color variation in the picture. Image resolution deals with the number of pixels actually contained in the image in the horizontal and vertical direction. The higher the image resolution, the more detail the image will contain, since there are more pixels available to render fine image detail. Image resolution is measured in pixels per inch, commonly referred to as dots per inch (dpi). The image resolution that is needed is dependent on the intended usage of the image file. A lower resolution of 72 dpi is required for display on a computer monitor. Digital photography requires higher resolution (greater than 300dpi).

The higher end digital cameras (greater than $10,000) can capture a 6 million pixel array (2,000 x3,000). This represents approximately 80% of the data captured by conventional film. These cameras when used with an high resolution printer can satisfy the most demanding photographers. The lower end cameras (less than $500) will capture around 1 million pixels typically less than 10% of the data captured by conventional films. The current quality offered by these cameras when used with a high resolution color printer provide only marginal quality acceptable only to less discerning consumers. The expectation for the near future (less than one year) is that the price/performance will converge to a price quality point that is acceptable to consumers driving significant growth for digital photography.

  Web Sites of Interest

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Authors: Luis Avila, Didier Hostettler, Carolina Krevolin, David Mould, Kenneth Theodos

BUS 552E EMBA ‘98